A Singular Case
by mrspencil
Summary: A slightly different approach to "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" Chapter 3...as he faced the worst of perils, I'd be standing at his side...
1. Chapter 1

_A/n: a slightly different approach to "The Adventure of the Speckled Band"_

_Contains spoilers for that story_

_Thanks to Stutley Constable for technical support:-)_

_Holmes and companions do not belong to me._

_POV of Watson_

_tweaked the poem a bit 22/1/13 as I wasn't happy with some of the verses_

* * *

><p><strong>A Singular Case: part 1<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Many years of friendship<em>

_With a master of deduction,_

_Have taught me that no detail_

_Is too humble nor too small._

_For example, careful study_

_Of our simple fireside poker,_

_Shows fine traces which remind me_

_Of the strangest case of all…_

~o~

Early, on a fine spring morning,

I was jolted from my slumber

By my fully dressed companion.

(April, eighteen eighty three.)

I was told that Mrs Hudson

Had been woken by a stranger;

She in turn had woken Holmes

And he, in turn, had woken me.

~o~

I descended to the parlour,

Where I saw a black-veiled stranger;

By her features, she was thirty;

Though her hair was flecked with grey.

Holmes deduced that she had travelled

Through the night by train and dog-cart;

Spattered mud and railway ticket

Gave her transport modes away.

~o~

Our address had been suggested

By a grateful former client;

Holmes agreed to hear her story

And invited her to start.

She declared the tale she'd tell us

Of her current situation

Showed the wicked depths which sometimes

Lurk within the human heart.

~o~

Thus we learned of Doctor Roylott,

Who had wed her widowed mother;

Filled with hate and disappointment;

Anger drove this dreadful man.

How her mother's tragic death

Had left our client and her sister

At the mercy of this monster

In his home at Stoke Moran.

~o~

She described their sad existence

In a bleak and cheerless household;

And of many sad occasions

When his rage got out of hand.

Strange exotic half-wild creatures

Wandered freely through his gardens;

While he spent his time with gypsies

Camped upon the doctor's land.

~o~

Julia, her dear twin sister,

And her constant close companion,

Visited an aunt in Harrow

Found great joy, so long denied;

Picture then our growing horror,

At the fate which overcame her,

Just two weeks before the date

She should have been her suitor's bride.

~o~

A corridor; three separate chambers,

No connecting doors to link them;

First in line is Doctor Roylott's,

Then her sister's, then her own.

In one final conversation;

Talk of fast-approaching wedding

And of nights disturbed by whistling;

Waking Julia, alone.

~o~

Doors were locked, a storm was raging;

Rain beat hard against the windows;

And our client lay unsleeping

Filled with vague impending doom.

Subtle links between twin sisters

Whispered hints of dire misfortune;

Then above the gale, wild screaming,

Soaked in terror, filled the room.

~o~

Door unlocked; a low soft whistle,

As she ran to save her sister,

And a clanging sound as if

A mass of metal dropped in place.

Her sister's door was moving slowly

And she froze, quite horror stricken;

At her swaying twin's emergence;

Raw, stark terror on her face.

~o~

Shocked, she saw her sister stagger,

Groping blindly from her bedroom

Falling with her limbs convulsing

In a writhing mass of pain.

As she held her dying sister,

One last phrase was clearly uttered;

"Speckled band!" was heard quite clearly;

Words which seared across her brain.

~o~

Two years passed; she mourned her sister,

Gained a suitor, plans a wedding;

Sought a future free from Roylott;

There's a better life in sight.

Planned repairs affect her bedroom;

So she moved into her sister's;

And as she lay awake, she heard

A gentle whistling in the night…

~o~

_to be continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

_a/n: A slightly different approach to "The Adventure of the Speckled Band". Contains spoilers for that story._

_Holmes and companions do not belong to me._

_POV OF Watson._

_Thanks to "anonymous" for feedback :-)_

* * *

><p><strong>A Singular Case: part 2<strong>

* * *

><p><em>...as she lies awake she hears<em>

_Soft whistling in the night…_

~o~

Shaken by the chilling echoes

Of the night she lost her sister;

Dressed, she searched the room by lamplight;

Stayed awake till early dawn;

Slipped away and found a driver;

Knew she had to find assistance;

Found her way to Baker Street,

Thus waking us that fine spring morn.

~o~

Holmes was sure this dreadful business

Ventured into deeper waters;

Also claimed our troubled client

Had not told us all she knew.

Black lace cuff concealed a handprint,

Standing out in livid bruises;

Quite a striking demonstration

Of the evil that men do.

~o~

Time, it seemed, was of the essence

If we hoped to save our client.

Plans were made to pack our bags

And make our way to Stoke Moran.

Black veil back in place, we watched her

Heading out to face her demons;

Lighter in her heart than since

Her long and harsh ordeal began.

~o~

Enter Doctor Grimesby Roylott;

Barging in quite uninvited;

Dressed as huntsman and physician;

Huge and bile-shot bird of prey.

Holmes maintained polite indifference;

Brushed aside his threats and bluster,

Smiled at streams of childish insults;

Waited while he had his say.

~o~

Doctor Roylott demonstrated

How he'd deal with interference;

Grabbed our simple fireside poker;

Curved it with a single twist;

Hurled the poker, left in anger.

Holmes retrieved it, concentrated,

Straightened out the bent steel poker;

Hidden strength his foe had missed.

~o~

Holmes departed on a quest which

Kept him occupied all morning;

Came back with a scribbled copy

Of our client's mother's will.

Roylott claimed a decent income

Till the day each girl got married.

Was this threat to his investments

Cause enough for him to kill?

~o~

This was not the time to dawdle;

Off to catch the train to Surrey;

Armed with toothbrush and revolver.

(Holmes preferred to travel light.)

As we drove past wayside hedges,

Spring's new life was all around us;

Quite a contrast to our mission,

And our client's deadly plight

~o~

Doctor Roylott's business kept him

Far from Stoke Moran till evening;

This would give us time to search for

Ways to end this lethal game.

Inch by inch Holmes searched the chamber;

Bedroom of our client's sister;

Studied every tiny detail;

Checked the solid window frame.

~o~

As Holmes sat, in chair, in corner;

Taking in each crack and panel,

Eyes were drawn to tasseled bell-pull;

Not clear what it hung there for.

Puzzled now, he tugged the bell-pull;

Saw it had no wires connected.

Why install a sham contraption?

Fears were growing; more and more.

~o~

Next, the room of Grimesby Roylott:

Camp bed, safe and milk-filled saucer,

Dog leash, useless ventilator

Linking through to Julia's room.

No cat for milk; no wire for bell-pull;

Dog leash, but no dog to use it;

Ventilator placed so oddly;

All-pervading sense of doom.

~o~

Rarely had I seen my comrade,

So grim-faced with brow so darkened;

Holmes decided thoughts were clearer

If he walked upon the lawn.

Up and down the lawn in silence,

While my friend perused his findings;

Quite convinced our client's fate

Was not to see another dawn.

~o~

Thoughts in order; plan constructed;

Holmes declared the need for action;

Stressed the absolute importance

Hanging on his every word.

First our client, at his signal,

Had to leave her sister's chamber.

Holmes and I would then move in

And see what strange events occurred.

~o~

Holmes and I then left the manor,

Settled in our nearby chambers;

Watched in silence at the window;

Doctor Roylott soon returned.

Shouting hoarsely at his servant.

(Iron gates are hard to open.)

Driving on through tree-lined parkland;

Minutes later; lamplight burned.

~o~

Holmes, for once, then hesitated;

As we waited in the darkness;

Said he really had some scruples;

Danger could not be denied.

But, if he required assistance,

And, perhaps my old revolver

As he faced the worst of perils,

I'd be standing at his side.

~o~

_to be continued..._

a/n 2: last line, second verse, quote from Shakespeare (Julius Caesar-Act 3) :-)


	3. Chapter 3

_a/n: a slightly different approach to "The Adventure of the Speckled Band". Contains spoilers for that story_

_Holmes and companions do not belong to me._

_Thanks again to Stutley Constable for technical support :)_

_POV of Watson._

* * *

><p><strong>A Singular Case: part 3<strong>

* * *

><p><em>...as he faced the worst of perils,<em>

_I'd be standing at his side..._

~o~

Seconds... minutes... hours... passed slowly,

As we stood and watched and waited.

Lamplights one by one extinguished;

Stoke Moran was in the dark.

Then, at last, a lone light flickered

From that middle bedroom window;

Time to start our sombre errand;

Make our way across the park.

~o~

Through the manor grounds in darkness;

Past the trees towards our beacon;

Startled by a darting figure;

Hideous, distorted child.

Holmes was just as agitated

By this writhing, dancing creature;

Till he laughed, then whispered softly;

Pet baboon was running wild.

~o~

In we climbed through open window,

Watching out for prowling cheetahs.

Noiselessly, Holmes closed the shutters,

Cast his eyes around the room.

Holmes, with long thin cane beside him,

Settled on the narrow bedstead.

I sat down on chair in corner;

Nothing could dispel the gloom.

~o~

Thus began our long night's vigil;

One which would not be forgotten;

Night-birds calling in the distance,

And the cheetah's cat-like whine.

Parish clock chimed out the quarters,

Blackness filled the room completely,

Every creak seemed fraught with danger,

Icy chills ran up the spine.

~o~

Light which in an instant vanished;

Scent of oil and burning metal;

Features of a burning lantern;

Shaded dark; no friendly gleam.

Then, the faintest sound of movement,

Nothing more for thirty minutes,

Followed by a gentle hissing,

Like a kettle's jet of steam.

~o~

Instantly; a whirl of action!

Holmes sprang up, with cane, in fury.

Lit a match and lashed the bell-pull;

Horror-struck, and pale as death.

Sudden flare impaired my vision;

Could not see what Holmes was striking;

Heard a soft and low-pitched whistle;

Gasped, and paused to catch my breath.

~o~

Silence; then the peace was broken;

Shattered by a dreadful shrieking.

Pain and helpless fear and anger,

Mingled in one awful cry.

Noise which roused the sleeping village;

Froze the blood and chilled the marrow;

Rooted to the spot, I listened;

Heard the final echoes die.

~o~

As that final echo faded,

Holmes declared our task was over.

I had failed to grasp his meaning;

Still I did not understand.

I followed Holmes to Roylott's chamber;

Saw him seated by the table;

Rigid stare fixed high on ceiling;

Round his brow: a yellow band!

~o~

"That's the speckled band", Holmes whispered,

"Roylott must have died in seconds."

Band became a loathsome adder,

Rearing up among his hair.

Holmes while speaking, drew the dog leash,

Threw the noose around the reptile;

Flung it in the safe and locked it;

Serpent back in serpent's lair.

~o~

Violence often strikes the violent;

Schemes will often trap the schemer;

Thus the death of Doctor Roylott

Seemed an apt and fitting fate.

We returned by train to London,

Having left our grateful client

With her kindly aunt in Harrow;

Cause, I think, to celebrate.

~o~

_Leg now stiff, I change position;_

_Pick the poker up to study;_

_Subtle curve which can't be straightened;_

_Cracks from metal, stressed, are clear._

_What about our erstwhile client?_

_Thanks to Holmes, she has a future._

_But, force applied will leave some damage._

_Scars don't simply disappear._

~o~

The End


End file.
